


Here Again

by seasonofthegeek



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged up characters, Reconnecting after time apart, identity reveals, post-Hawk Moth, time skip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-01-04 09:43:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18341114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seasonofthegeek/pseuds/seasonofthegeek
Summary: Marinette left Paris after the defeat of Hawk Moth almost a decade ago without ever finding out the identity of her partner. She's back in town for a visit when she happens to see a streak of black racing across the rooftops.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story was previously in my drabbles sections but I know at least two more parts are coming now so I'm going to go ahead and pull it out into its own story for easier reading since I'm not sure how long it will go. :)

“Chat Noir!” Marinette slapped a hand over her mouth as soon as the yell had come out but the damage was already done. The streak of black she’d seen racing across a nearby roof paused for the slightest second and then immediately changed direction to head towards her. She stumbled back and fell onto a pool lounger. 

She’d be lying to herself if she said she hadn’t had the smallest hope that she would somehow see him when she came up to the hotel roof for some fresh air. The chance had been so slim though that when she actually spotted him, she called out before she could give it a second thought. Now he was landing on the roof with a wide smile and bright eyes and Marinette’s chest tightened. 

“Hi,” she squeaked as she offered an awkward wave while she stood.

“As I live and breathe.” Chat Noir greeted her with a deep bow but his eyes never left hers. “What did Paris ever do to deserve to be graced by the presence of the hottest designer on the fashion scene?”

“Flatterer.” She blushed and held her hands together so she didn’t reach out to him out of habit despite the years that had passed. He wouldn’t have been used to that from Marinette and she definitely wasn’t Ladybug anymore. “I’m hardly more than an intern. I don’t even have my own line yet.”

“That’s not the way I hear it. The way Jagged talks, you’re well sought after.” He gave her a knowing wink and Marinette felt her blush deepen. 

“I’m sure he exaggerated. I saw him at a show in the states a few months back.”

Chat Noir stepped back and gave her an obvious once-over. “It really is awesome to see you. You look great. How long are you here for?”

“A week or so? My team just got done with a big project and I really needed some time away to decompress.”

“My team, she says,” he teased, an amused twinkle in his eye. “Sounds like a lot more than an intern to me.”

She bit her lip to keep from smiling. “Maybe just a bit.”

“There ya go. You didn’t want to stay with your parents?”

“The timing wasn’t great on my end. They’re remodeling so there wasn’t room although they wanted to try to make it work.” She waved a hand. “It’s fine though. To be honest, it feels a little weird to be back anyway. I think staying in my old room would’ve only added to that.”

Chat Noir shifted his weight as he scratched the back of his neck, not meeting her eyes. “Yeah, you kinda got out of here as soon as you could after you graduated, huh?”

Marinette remembered with vivid clarity why she’d tried to convince herself earlier to avoid Chat Noir at all costs during her visit. They’d finally defeated Hawkmoth and Mayura right before they graduated. The missing Miraculous had been returned to Master Fu and with them, Marinette had given up the Ladybug Miraculous. She’d spent years saving Paris from akumas and she wanted to do more with her life now that the threat of Hawkmoth was gone. Her partner hadn’t felt the same way and their final goodbye as Ladybug and Chat Noir hadn’t exactly been warm and fuzzy. She’d wanted to reveal their identities since it didn’t matter anymore but Chat Noir had only wished her good luck with the rest of her life and stormed away before she could tell him who she was under the spots. It’d been one of the worst day of her life. 

Her stomach rolled anxiously. “Uh, yeah, I guess I did.”

He nodded. “Sounds like things are going great for you though.”

“They are.” She heard the words fall fake and heavy from her lips. “But it, uh, it is nice to be back here around friendly faces.”

“You’ve definitely been missed.”

An awkward silence settled between them and Marinette quickly spoke before it could spread out any longer. “Is it just you out?” She immediately regretted the question but floundered to smooth it over. “I didn’t know if Rena Rouge or Queen Bee or maybe Carapace or someone patrolled with you.”

“Oh.” He blinked. “Yeah, you have been gone a while. It’s mostly just me.” He gave her half a shrug. “There isn’t a lot that happens anymore that the police can’t handle but I think people still like knowing there’s someone like me out there.”

“So you run around Paris every once in the while then?” she asked with a small smile.

“Pretty much.” He ducked his head in a familiar shy gesture that made her heart clench. 

“I think that’s really great, Chat.”

“It’s not a big deal. I like coming out like this.”

“Even after all these years?”

“Especially after all these years. It feels nice to have earned a little peace.” He grinned as he stretched from side to side. “Definitely starting to feel my age though.” He let out a bittersweet laugh and Marinette impulsively moved closer to him.

“You don’t look a day over twenty.”

“You’re an awful liar, Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” 

The way he was looking at her had Marinette retaking her step back to put some distance between them. There was something too discerning in his eyes that she didn’t remember from before. After a moment, his expression lightened and he smiled brightly at her. 

“But I’ll take it for the compliment it is. Thank you.” He bowed dramatically. “I think for now though, I should probably be off. It’s getting late.”

“Right, yeah, of course.” Marinette could feel herself nodding too much and swallowed hard. “Um, would you maybe want to join me for dinner while I’m in town? Maybe I could have room service bring something up here? I’d love to get to talk with you more before I leave again.”

He seemed to consider that for a long second and then he was stepping closer. He reached up to brush a section of her hair behind her ear and his thumb rubbed along her empty earlobe, the action sending a pleasant shiver down her spine. “I’d really like that,” he finally replied, voice barely above a whisper. 

The truth between them hung heavy on the air even as he stepped back and pasted on a generic smile. “Leave a message for me with the front desk and I’ll meet you whenever you want.” He walked to the edge of the roof and grabbed his baton. He stared back at her and his smile became a little more genuine. “I really am glad I got to see you tonight.”

Everything in Marinette screamed at her to ask him to stay. She needed to explain everything to him. Maybe he would understand why she had to leave for a while. Maybe he would…maybe he would want her to stay and maybe she would. Maybe she would ask for Tikki and her earrings back and she would race across rooftops with him again and swing through the air and remember how good it felt just to help people. 

“Me too,” she agreed with her own smile. “And Chat?”

“Hmm?”

“Please come back.” She felt her heart race as she pushed on with her words and hoped he understood. “I did.”

He was quiet for what felt like too long and Marinette was sure he was about to leap from the edge of the roof without a reply but then he was ducking his head with a shy nod. “It’s a promise, m’lady,” he said and then he was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

“I should call and cancel, right? I mean, obviously I should call and cancel.” Adrien paced the length of Nino’s office and spun on his heel to go back the other way when he ran up on the wall. “I can’t have dinner with her now that she knows.”

Nino eyed him warily. “What does she know exactly?”

“Nino, she knows that I know!”

“That you know…”

“Marinette knows that Chat Noir knows that Marinette is Ladybug,” he shook his head in irritation and amended, “was Ladybug. And so if I show up tonight, she’s going to want to know who Chat Noir is and that’s me.” He slapped his chest and winced. “That was a dumb thing to do. This whole thing is dumb.”

Nino glanced at his computer screen and inwardly sighed at the number of emails piling up. “And you don’t want her to know?”

“No! I mean, yes? I don’t know. It’s not like it matters at this point, does it?”

“Then just go to dinner as Chat and if she asks who you are and you don’t want to tell her in the moment, then don’t. She isn’t going to be here very long anyway from what I’ve heard.”

“Where did you hear that? Did Alya tell you that?”

“She did.”

Adrien pursed his lips. “So you’ve talked to her. That’s…kind of big.”

Nino turned around in his desk chair to pay attention to his computer. “We’re not doing this.”

“You know you were a lot cooler before you became a corporate sellout.”

“Dude, you got me this job!”

“Still though.”

“You know, you’re supposed to be working upstairs right now. At your desk.”

“So did Alya call you or did you call her?”

Nino sighed and the springs of his chair squeaked as he turned back to the other man. “Marinette doesn’t know anything about your life now and you don’t know anything about hers. You guys don’t really owe each other anything. All of that was a long time ago.”

“I don’t know if I would say a really long time ago. A decade really isn’t that long and–”

“Adrien.”

“Nino.” Adrien leaned against the closed door. “She looked really pretty. I think I forgot how pretty she is.”

Nino pinched the bridge of his nose but couldn’t hold in a laugh. “I can’t believe I’m almost thirty and having this conversation. Look, you were upset when she left, but it was a while ago. This has to be your call.”

“But you wouldn’t tell her?”

“I’m not the guy you should be asking for love advice, dude. Just do what feels right. That’s all I can tell you.”  
_______________________________________

“I wasn’t really sure what you like now.” Marinette busied herself with uncovering the dishes set out on the dining table. There were candles set up along the side of the pool they were nearest to and two chairs from the hotel were set on either side of the table. “I used to feed you day old cookies and croissants and it’d be fine.”

Chat Noir laughed and peered at the spread. “Did you order the whole menu, Princess?” He watched with delight as her cheeks went dark as soon as the nickname fell from his lips. 

“I…well, no,” she laughed nervously. “But I probably did order more than we can both eat.”

“Challenge accepted,” he winked and moved to pull out her chair for her.

Marinette sat down and smoothed her skirt out as he rounded the table to take a seat. She was dying to blatantly ask him if he really knew she’d been Ladybug but she couldn’t seem to actually force the words out. “How have you been?”

Chat Noir spooned a heap of steamed broccoli onto his plate. “Today or the last ten years?”

Her blush returned and she dipped her head in an attempt to hide it as she reached for a grilled chicken breast. “Either one, I guess.”

“I’ve been good,” he nodded as he continued to fill his plate. “The first year or so after Hawk Moth was rough but I found my groove.”

“When did the others stop, uh, stop helping?” 

He shrugged. “Over time. They’ve all said if something happens and I need them, I can call, but things stay pretty quiet.”

“That’s good.”

“Yeah.” He eyed her. “But that’s not what you really want to ask me, is it, m’lady?”


	3. Chapter 3

Marinette stared across the table and felt like her heart was going to beat right out of her chest. “When did you figure it out?” she asked quietly, not able to meet his eyes.

“Not long after you left,” Chat Noir answered, sitting back in his chair. “I’d had suspicions in the past and with Marinette and Ladybug leaving at the same time and all, I asked Master Fu and he confirmed it for me.”

“I’m so sorry, Chat.”

“I get it now.” He dropped his gaze to the table and reached out to fiddle with the cloth napkin hanging off the edge. “I was upset back then but it wasn’t just about you. There was a lot going on in my personal life and losing you was…it was really hard, but now I can see you needed to get away and there wasn’t anything wrong with that.”

Marinette clasped her hands together but leaned forward. “Still though. I should’ve tried harder to make sure we were right before I left.”

“And I should’ve realized your decision wasn’t based on me.” He finally looked at her and shrugged. “It was a tough time for both of us.” He smiled then. “But now we’re here and this is good.” His brow raised beneath his mask. “Right?”

She laughed, cheeks going pink. “Yeah, this is good. I’m really glad we’re getting to talk now.”

“Me too.” Chat Noir looked over the plates of food. “So how are we doing this? Each picking out what we want most or buffet style?”

“Buffet style maybe? Then we can try it all.”

“I love the way you think.” He was pleased to see her fading blush refreshed as she ducked her head and reached for a plate. “Are you going to try to get visit with old friends before you head out again?”

Marinette nodded as she spooned steamed rice onto her plate. “I’ve hung out with Alya a few times so that’s been nice. I just saw Chloe and Kagami at an event a couple of weeks ago so I’ll probably skip them this time around. I’d like to see Nino but I’m trying to feel out the whole Alya situation first.” She set the bowl down and reached for a plate of marinated chicken. “Luka and I have been chatting online a good bit since we met back up at one of Jagged’s shows so I told him we’d make time for dinner one night.”

“Sounds like a pretty full schedule.”

“Not too full.” She glanced up at him through a fringe of hair. “I mean, if you wanted to get together again, I could make time.” 

If Marinette had been trying to make his heart explode, she was well on her way to being successful. Chat Noir cleared his throat. “That’s, uh, that’s a really nice offer. You said you don’t know how long you’re staying?”

“Work wants me back yesterday.” She laughed but it wasn’t a joyful sound. “My vacation time and reservation here lasts through the rest of the week though and then…I’m not sure.”

Chat Noir moved some noodles around with his fork. “You don’t want to go back?”

“I think I just feel like I haven’t been able to take a breath for last few years and I really, really want to.” She frowned. “The problem is, though, if I stay away for longer than a few days, I could lose my spot.”

“Just like that?”

“It’s pretty competitive.”

“When do you have to decide by?”

“Sunday.”

Chat Noir grimaced. “Eesh.”

“Yeah.”

They ate in quiet for a few minutes and Chat Noir gathered his courage. “I notice you didn’t mention visiting Adrien. He was one of your friends, wasn’t he?”

Marinette’s fork clattered to her plate and she picked it back up with a sputtered apology. “Oh, uh, I haven’t talked to him in years.” She forced a nervous laugh. “I doubt he’d even remember me.”

Chat Noir couldn’t decipher the feeling that rushed through him and he tried to hide his confusion with a smile. “I can say with one hundred percent certainty that he definitely remembers you, Princess.”

She frowned but looked down at the food on her plate, pushing all of her rice into a mound. “Uh, well, you know with all the Hawk Moth being Gabriel stuff…” She trailed off. “Even if he doesn’t know about me. I guess it still feels…” She blew out a puff of breath. “I broke what was left of his family.”

“We had to stop Hawk Moth from hurting more people,” Chat Noir replied softly. “I don’t blame you for that.” The instant she looked up at him, he knew that she knew and it all felt like too much. “Dessert?” he offered weakly.


	4. Chapter 4

“Adrien?” Marinette’s voice was little more than a whisper as she stared at Chat Noir.

He offered a sheepish smile. “And to think I was always the one worried about giving it away all those years ago. Guess I was hiding it better than I thought.”

She blinked at the sudden tears in her eyes. “Adrien, I’m so, so sorry.”

Chat Noir waved her off. “It was a lifetime ago, Marinette. And I meant what I said, I don’t blame you. Sad as it is, I have a better relationship with my father now than I ever had before.”

“You talk to him?”

He nodded. “I visit him every Sunday at the prison. He’s...believe it or not, he’s actually doing well. It’s taken a while but he’s back to sketching and designing and he’s been open about talking through a lot of stuff. He knows he was wrong.”

Marinette could still feel the tears in her eyes but she ignored them. “Does he know about you?”

“I told him after a few months. He’d had his suspicions so he wasn’t completely shocked but I still think it was a bit of a surprise. He refused to see me for a few weeks and then he mellowed out again and was ready to act like an adult.” He frowned at her reaction. “Do you need a hug?”

She let out a strangled sound that landed somewhere between a laugh and a sob and Chat Noir was up and rounding the table. He pulled her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her and Marinette cried against his chest. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered, voice ragged. “I ruined your family and we were best friends and then I left and I--”

“Hey, stop that,” he chided gently, pulling back enough to look down at her. “We saved a lot of people by stopping him. We know that and he knows that. All of Paris knows that. You have nothing to apologize for.”

Marinette stepped back and wiped at her eyes. “Even the leaving part?” she sniffled.

“I can forgive you for that. I think you need to too though.”

She used the end of her sleeve to wipe at her eyes. “You know, you used to be the emotional one. When did we switch?” 

He laughed in surprise and finally released his hold on her, stepping back. “I think you get a pass. There have been quite a few revelations tonight for you.”

“And here I thought we were just going to eat dinner and make small talk.”

“Eh, we’ve never been ones to do anything by halves.”

“No, I don’t guess we have.” Marinette looked up at him and felt the loss of the brief contact they’d had. She was tempted to try to step into another hug when the roof access door opened and one of the hotel staff appeared. If he was surprised to see the hero there, he didn’t show it as he gave Marinette his attention. 

“Excuse the interruption, Ms. Dupain-Cheng. Are you ready for the table to be cleared?”

“Oh, I...” She looked up at Chat Noir but his expression was unreadable. “I guess the food has mostly gone cold now.”

“Would it be possible to have it boxed up?” Chat Noir asked. “It was much too good to let go to waste. Please let the chef know we enjoyed it.”

The server bowed and informed them that he would be back with supplies within minutes.

“I guess it’s time for me to get going.” Chat Noir smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes.

Marinette bit her bottom lip. “Or you could stay, if you want.”

“Stay?”

“Maybe we could go down to my suite and just...keep talking? You could get more comfortable.”

He grinned coyly. “Trying to get me out of my cat suit, m’lady?”

Marinette’s face went scarlet and she sputtered. “No! That’s not...I didn’t...”

“I’d love to stay. As a friend,” he clarified.

She knew confusion crossed her face and quickly tried to hide it. “Of course.”

“It’s just, uh, I think it’s for the best to be clear,” he continued. “So there isn’t any misunderstanding. I know sometimes I flirt and I, uh...I didn’t want that to be taken for anything other than it is.”

“Right, of course,” she nodded, feeling foolish. She did actually just want to talk to him as Adrien and catch up but now everything felt awkward. She wondered if there was a way to take back her invitation without making things worse. He used to be the easiest person in her life to talk to but the years they’d spent apart were beginning to show.

“Shall we?” He gestured to the door and Marinette felt resigned to muddle through the rest of the night as best she could without embarrassing herself further.

“Sure.”


	5. Chapter 5

“Okay, so imagine for a minute that you just don’t go back to work,” Adrien offered. “What can you see yourself doing?”

Marinette adjusted her position on the suite couch, tucking her feet beneath her and hugging a throw pillow to her chest. “I really don’t know,” she admitted. “For so long, all I wanted to do was get into fashion.”

“There’s no reason you can’t stay in it.”

“I guess, but I’m not sure if I know how to if I’m not working where I am now.”

He considered that. “What are the bad things about working there?”

She frowned. “Well, I stay busy constantly. This is the first time I’ve actually gotten to come back home since I took the job. Usually my parents end up flying out to see me for holidays because it’s easier.”

“So you’re overworked.” Adrien held up a finger. “What else?”

Marinette bit her lip. “I think a lot of stuff stems from that. I hardly have any friends outside people I see at work and I’m not sure that we would still be friends if we weren’t seeing each other every single day. And don’t even get me started on having no time to date.” Her eyes flicked to Adrien’s and then quickly away as her cheeks warmed. “I know on paper it doesn’t look like a healthy thing, but this is all I’ve ever wanted to do. It would be stupid to give up on it now.”

“Are you trying to convince me or you?” he asked gently.

She hugged herself. “Let’s talk about you for a while.”

Adrien gave her half a smile and a nod. “Uh, let’s see. I got a job at a financial firm that deals with a lot of different things. I work on the customer service side so I sit in an office and answer phone calls and emails from customers with questions about their accounts and if our services would be a good fit for them. I help people set up savings accounts and work towards paying off debt and it’s actually kind of nice. Nino works there too, but he’s in a different department.”

“Wow. We’re both so...adult.”

He chuckled. “It’s weird, huh?”

“I just remember us sitting on the edge of that building that overlooked the park and talking about homework all the time...do you remember the place I’m talking about?”

Adrien’s eyes softened. “Of course I do. I still go there sometimes.”

“Really?”

“I get nostalgic and it’s got a nice view during festivals and stuff.”

Marinette sank back against the couch. “There’s so many places we hung out that I think about sometimes. We really were just two kids running around the city, weren’t we?”

“Well, to be fair, we did fight akumas and take down a supervillain,” he pointed out.

“There is that.” She stifled a yawn and adjusted again.

“You’re exhausted; I should go. The sun looks like it’s coming up soon.”

“Please don’t. This has been really nice. I just need some coffee or something.”

“I can always come back after you’ve had some rest.”

“I don’t want you to leave.” She seemed to catch herself, her eyes widening slightly. “But yeah, of course, we can get back together sometime later this week.”

Adrien glanced back towards where Plagg was curled up on the counter of the in-suite kitchenette. “We could go get some coffee if you want to so we can hang out a little longer.”

“I could order some from room service,” Marinette offered.

“No, I mean...” He stood and held up his hand so the silver ring glinted in the soft lamp light. “We can go out and get coffee,” he grinned. “Plagg, claws out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments disclaimer: I've gotten some rough anonymous comments on different stories over the past couple of weeks and AO3 can't do much when someone doesn't have an account so from now on, all of my stories will be moving to only allowing user comments. I didn't want to have to go to this since I know there are plenty of really nice people who leave nice comments and don't have accounts on here, but I'm tired of getting hateful comments mixed in with them that can't be reported so this is what I need to do if I'm going to keep posting on here. Thanks so much for your support and for reading my stories. <3


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